Team Overland

Disabled Marine Corps Veteran founds nonprofit business, Team Overland, to help combat Post Traumatic Stress

TAP recently discovered this vital outdoor adventure oriented non-profit organization called Team Overland and we had to give it a shout out.

Team Overland is a newly founded nonprofit organization that uses outdoor adventures as an outlet to overcome challenges associated with combat related Post Traumatic Stress and to help facilitate veteran’s reintegration into civilian society. CEO and Founder Matthew Havniear, a Marine Corps Veteran, believes that in order for Team Overland to have a realistic impact on veteran reintegration the organization must have both veterans and civilians working together.

Here are some stats on our returning veterans and some input from Matthew: 5.5 million of the 21.9 million veterans in the U.S. have service-related disabilities. “Due to the quality of medical treatment on the battlefield improving, they return alive, but not always whole. Military members are trained to depend on each other. After the military, many veterans feel disconnected and alone. They experience a lack of camaraderie as they return to the civilian world.”

The Adventure Portal is based out of San Diego’s north county. We rub shoulders with our veterans and active service members frequently as Camp Pendlton is practically in our backyard. Service men must never be forgotten and must alway be supported. This is a TAP endorsed company that we hope our readers help support . Read on for more of Matt Havniear’s background, service, what Team Overland does and how you can help support his organization.

A Corporal in the Marine Corps, Matt Havniear served as an infantry Assaultman and Marine Raider with 2nd Battalion 7th Marines Fox Company Weapons out of Twenty-Nine Palms, CA. Matthew deployed to Now Zad, Afghanistan in 2008 in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. His company found themselves embroiled daily in heavy firefights. They were surprised to discover the town looking like a ghost town. It was like a modern-day battle of Stalingrad. The city was in ruins, mined and dangerous. The fighting went from house to house then from one plot of land to another.

Upon his return from Afghanistan in 2010, Matthew was diagnosed with service connected Post Traumatic Stress, Traumatic Brain Injury and Post Concussion Syndrome. He struggled with the symptoms and searched for healthy outlets, but only found long waits and clinical approaches from doctors. Knowing that he needed to find a better outlet for stress management, he became very active with volunteer work. Matt quickly realized that there was a benefit from being part of a team and serving the community. Matthew’s late father Dale Havniear, was an avid outdoorsman and taught Matt, at an early age, the importance of staying connected with the outdoors and nature. Being part of a team and staying connected to nature would prove to be very important in Matthew’s journey of re-integration into civilian life.

As a result of him struggling with reintegration into civilian life and the effects of Post Traumatic Stress, Matthew decided to combine his life-long passions for both the outdoors and for non-profit service to create Team Overland. Team Overland provides guided, overland expeditions to veterans that want a healthy and natural outlet for their stress while learning stress- management techniques. Active military members are trained to depend on each other. After the military, many veterans feel disconnected and alone. They experience a lack of camaraderie as they return to the civilian world.

Team Overland’s mission is to help vets overcome the effects of combat injuries; both physical and mental. It provides veterans with a healthy and natural way to manage their personal stress while increasing their social network. The Team Overland experience provides veterans with camaraderie, encouragement, reintegration and a support system that has proven vital to their reintegration and healing.

Matthew describes Team Overland in his own words: “We impact veteran lives by helping members tackle personal challenges. We encourage members to positively manage their stress by providing healthy social environments and by planning activities that improve cognitive coping skills. We inspire our team members, and encourage veteran reintegration. Our approach assists in the rehabilitation process by providing members with positive reinforcement and the support of a like minded community.”

“On the trail, we work as a team to overcome the obstacles encountered on the way to our destinations. Team Overland is unique in that it is not exclusive to just military members. We want to have an impact on veteran reintegration and we believe that that it is only possible by having an organization with veterans and civilians working together. At Team Overland, we value and lean on our non-military members. We noticed early on that the civilians were passionate about “sharing the burden” of service. We have found that our approach builds bonds between military and non-military members through the shared interest of outdoor adventure and teamwork on the trail.”

“Team Overland has also quickly gained interest on a national level. We have secured sponsorship from Warn Industries, Snugtop, Cascadia Vehicle Tents, K&N Filters, AEM Intakes, Factor 55, Overland Solar, Diabolical Inc., Crux Off-road, M&M Paint Supply of Medford Oregon, L. T. Wright Knives, IH8Mud.com, Adventure Ready, Sign Dude of Medford Oregon,Northwest Trails Innovations, and Full Force Metalworks with more partnerships forming daily. The support of those companies has been incredible. There is a lot of gear needed to operate safely and effectively and those companies have helped us to a great start.”

There is still a lot the organization needs to continue. “We are hopeful that more companies that believe in our mission will come on board so that we can continue providing veterans and civilians the camaraderie, support systems and adventures that has proved so powerful. If interested in becoming a member of the team or supporting our cause please visit www.TeamOverland.org . You can also find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/teamoverland , and on twitter at www.twitter.com/teamoverland.”

Article and photos courtesy of Matthew Havniear CEO and Founder of Team Overland

Olloclip 4-in-1 Iphone Lens

Lori Palmer

The following article came to us courtesy of Bret Edge of Bret Edge Photography

“I enjoy the simple pleasures of iPhone photography. It’s uncomplicated, allowing the user to enjoy photographing a fleeting moment without fussing over aperture, shutter speed and ISO settings, among other things. As much as I appreciate the sheer simplicity of using a camera that literally requires only one action to make a photo – pressing the shutter button – there are times I wish for a little bit more flexibility.”

“The Olloclip, is an easy to use 4-in-1 clip on iPhone lens system (it works on other camera phones as well). It includes two macro lenses, one wide angle lens and one fisheye lens. The Olloclip 4-in-1 iPhone lens is compact and comes with a small bag for lens storage.”

“I spent several weeks with an Olloclip, using it on my iPhone 5S. Although all of the lenses were enjoyable to use, I found myself most interested in using the two macro lenses, which allow extremely close focus. The results were amazing. I’ve never been that interested in macro photography. Still, it didn’t take long before I was seeking out opportunities to slap one of the macro lenses on. It’s easy; you simply unscrew either the fisheye or wide-angle lens to reveal the macro lens hidden beneath. Brilliant design! In practice, I found the macro lenses challenging to use only because the focus distance is so limited that any slight movement of the camera or the subject produced out of focus images. Ideally, you’ll need to mount the phone on a tripod that you can move incrementally closer to the subject until you reach the perfect focus distance. Of course, this does somewhat kill the spontaneity of phone photography. When you get it right, though, the results are amazing, revealing beautiful little scenes that you never knew existed!”

“The other two lenses, the wide-angle and fisheye, were also fun to use. The fisheye results in a circular vignette around your subject that I preferred to crop out. The wide-angle lens provided a significantly wider field of view than the native iPhone camera lens, but at a cost. In several photographs I found pretty severe chromatic aberration, or color blur along high contrast edges. Speaking of edges, the top and bottom edges of all photographs were blurred. At first I thought that maybe I didn’t have the lens properly seated on the camera but I’m picky. Yes, I am. I know, it’s just iPhone photography, but as a professional photographer who strives to create images that are free of any technical defects, it bugged me. Average users probably wouldn’t notice it and even if they did, they probably wouldn’t care.”

“The entire lens system is really easy to use. All four lenses are contained on one “clip” that slides over the phone camera. No special apps are needed to make images with the Olloclip. On one side is the fisheye lens, on the other is the wide-angle lens. Unscrew either one to reveal a 10X or 15X macro lens. That’s it. If you use a phone case, you’ll need to remove the case prior to attaching the Olloclip. How frustrating you find this will depend on which case you use. Olloclip does make the Quick-Flip Case that allows attachment of the lenses without removing the case. The Olloclip 4-in-1 lens is available on their website at www.olloclip.com/product/iphone5-4-in-1, for $69.99. Other lenses are also available, though I did not have an opportunity to test them for this review.”

Thanks to author Bret Edge of Bret Edge Photography for contributing this article and photos.

Ten Important Things to do After you’ve Driven Off – Road

Andy Palmer

This is the fourth in a 5 part series of safety articles written by Tom Severin of Badlands Off Road Adventures. Tom is an International 4WD Trainers Association certified professional 4WD trainer and a Wilderness First Responder (WFR). He is an instructor for the United Four Wheel Drive Association and the CA Association of 4WD Clubs.

Just as you put a lot of thought and preparation into your trip before you set off, you should also take the time afterward to ensure that your vehicle and gear survived the off -road drive and are ready for the next adventure. Even a mild off – road course can affect your vehicle.

Print this checklist and keep it in your glove compartment or other dry location. By following this list carefully, you ensure that you review every important section or component of your vehicle.

First and foremost, do a thorough inspection of your vehicle to make sure that it is in safe driving condition. You should not take the vehicle onto roads, especially the highway, if there are significant structural or other safety issues.

1. Air up your tires. Don’t try to drive on pavement with your tires low on pressure. Not only will you have difficulty handling the vehicle, but you risk serious
damage to tires and rims. Check your tire pressure the following morning. It can drop 2 to 5 PSI overnight. Remember that you aired up when the tires were hot.

2. Wash and vacuum your vehicle. This will help prevent the spread of weed seeds to other areas, but also makes it easier to spot any fluid leaks and damage that needs repairing. Invasive plants are a problem all over the U.S., caused in part by people driving in multiple areas—sometimes even in different states—without cleaning their vehicles between trips. As a result, they spread noxious weeds to new locations. Be a good sport and clean your vehicle after each off-road drive.

3. Wash your engine. Drive to an appropriate facility, turn off the engine, and hose it down. With a clean engine, you can spot any leak that has developed, as well as a loose bolt, hose, clamp, or other part.

4. Check fluid levels, fan or serpentine belt, and other parts. If you do this frequently enough, you will become accustomed to your engine compartment, and it will be easier to spot a problem or potential problem when one occurs.

5. Examine the differential and transmission for cracks and the fluids for water.

6. Clean Brake Drums. Inspect and clean drum brakes, if applicable. Pull off the drums and clean out any mud or sand inside. That will wear down your brakes in a hurry. This is a good time to adjust your brakes or even replace the shoes, if need be.

7. Inspect CV boots, struts and shocks, and other underbody parts. Any need replacing? Take a look at joints, bearings, and other parts that may need re-greasing. What about the nuts and bolts that hold the axle and suspension together? The vehicle’s suspension system (track bar, control arm, shocks, and springs) are very susceptible to loosening and affect the drivability. Problems with any one of these items could cause damage to the drive train over time.

8. Push and pull on the suspension to see if anything is loose. Push on the side of the vehicle. Are the track bars loose? Have a friend rotate the steering wheel back and forth while you inspect the tie rod ends.

9. Inspect your tools. Are they clean, in order, and accessible?

10. Clean and restock any fluids or gear that you used or that became damaged. This includes medical supplies, spare parts, your fire extinguisher, recovery straps, etc.. Create a list of repairs and other things you will need to take care of post – trip during the trip or on the way home while they are still fresh in your mind. Make sure you put back all the essential items, and that your vehicle is tidy and prepared for your next trip.

Happy Trails!

Winching Technique-how to use a snatch block

Tom Severin

What is a snatch block? A snatch block is a pulley block with a side plate that swings open. Because the side plate opens, you don’t have to thread your winch cable through the opening, instead you open the side plate, fit the cable over the pulley, and then close the side plate. It’s a handy piece of equipment that can improve the function of your winch. A snatch block will increase your winch’s pulling power significantly , and will give you more options in self-recovery situations.

When do you use it? In a recovery situation, ideally you would have an anchor point located directly in front of your vehicle, so that you don’t have to angle your winch cable. When this isn’t possible, you can use a snatch block to set up an angled, single-line pull. This involves running the winch cable through the snatch block to an anchor point that is off at an angle. Then you need to identify a second anchor point that’s angled in the opposite direction as the first anchor point. Attach the snatch block to the second anchor point with a choke chain. Then use the tension from the two off-set anchor points to position the block directly in front of your vehicle.

A winching essential for safety and effectiveness. One of the rules of winching is to make sure your cable spools up on the winch drum evenly. This is easiest when you are winching straight forward. If you pull at an angle, the cable is more likely to bunch up on one side of the winch drum.

When dual pull action is needed-When you are recovering a rig that is significantly heavier than yours or if you’re not sure your winch will have the power to recover your vehicle, you can use a snatch block to create a double-line pull. A double-line pull is created by using the snatch block to redirect the winch cable back to the winch.

If you are moving another vehicle,the stuck vehicle is attached to the snatch block. The winch cable goes through the snatch block and back to an anchor point that’s next to your vehicle. This anchor point takes some of the strain off your vehicle, which is important when you are recovering a heavier rig. In self-recovery, the cable is run through the snatch block then back to your vehicle. Connect the snatch block to an anchor point directly in front of the vehicle. Remember that when you use the double-pull set up it will not only double the pulling power of your winch but, it will cut the pull speed in half.

Author: Expert Advice- Warn

Safety notes when winching:
–Wear leather gloves
–Do not straddle the cable when in use
–In case of line breakage or kick back, put a coat or blanket over the line
–Don’t us a hook on the end of a cable, use an anchor shackle

Rock-Crawling 4×4 Sprinter

Andy Palmer

rock crawling with the Sprinter web e1438711109149

Fellow adventurer, blogger and author of the book 2013 Sprinter RV Buyer’s Guide and Sprinter RV Conversion Sourcebook, Greg Keith interviewed Doug Chase who converted his Mercedes Sprinter Van into an off-road, rock crawling machine.

“In Europe, there are plenty of 4×4 Sprinter vans, but her in the U.S. we have had to subsist mostly on a diet of rumors and aftermarket conversions. Doug Chase was determined to build an off-road, rock-crawling Spinter that would be able to conquer any terrain.” The following is an interview between Greg and Doug:

What What were your reasons for doing this conversion on a Sprinter, and a 144″ regular-roof Sprinter 2500 at that?

DC: “Well, we chose the Sprinter over other vans because of its great gas mileage, great resale value, and great performance with the turbo at altitude. That said, we chose the short/low Sprinter model because it fits in the tent area of campgrounds, the 144″ wheelbase fits in normal parking spots in town, the short Sprinter works better for maneuvering on narrow 4WD trails, and the low-roof model is the only roof that Sportsmobile will do a popup on. So we ended up ordering a 2010 Sprinter 2500 144″ wheelbase regular-roof Sprinter.”

How did you learn about the Sprinter van?

DC: “We saw a Sprinter conversion at Sportsmobile and were impressed, but they would not convert it to a 4X4, so we bought a Sprinter locally and had that done by Whitefeather 4×4 Conversions.”

Were there particular things that attracted you to the type of Sprinter van you chose?

DC: “Sure – better head clearance to start, better room for your feet on the front passenger side, and great visibility when driving with the larger window format, compared to an Econoline or any of the domestic vans.”

Did you consider any other vehicles?

DC: “We started out wanting the Ford Econoline, but then noted the major problems: the resale value is terrible, the engines are typically trashed after so many miles, visibility from the van is poor, and the fuel mileage is terrible. ”

What were your major design goals? Did you have specific needs that weren’t met by commercial 4×4 Sprinter conversions?

DC: “We wanted a basic hauler for camping/kayaking/skiing/snowshoeing/backpacking and day trips with the dogs. We also really wanted to have just one fuel source for both heating and cooking. We didn’t feel we needed a bathroom in the van, but we did want an outdoor shower (more for the dogs than for us!), large sturdy bumpers for 4X4 trails, good storage, pivoting seats, and the ability to sleep either in the airy top in summer or inside the van body in poor weather.”

“We also wanted four-wheel-drive with good clearance, an easy entrance with flip-up stairs, a side door cabinet for the times we do camp from it (ours converts to a table for outside), a nice GPS system with bread crumb capability, and of course a good sound system since we often travel some distance to get to where we want to go.”

Did you end up doing several designs, or just one?

DC: “Just one, based on my research and the advice of our builder, GTRV.”

About how long did the 4×4 Sprinter conversion take to design and build?

DC: “From the point of ordering the Sprinter straight from the factory in Germany to actually finishing the whole conversion, one year. The cabinets took about three months to complete, and the 4X4 conversion took about two months.”

What are the features of the design that you feel turned out the best?

DC: “It is all really cool. The GoLight remote spotlight is expensive, but I love having it, it’s great for getting into camp late and packing out late in the dark or in bad weather. Also, the GPS/audio system is really nice. The diesel stove/heater is great, the popup works really well for us, and we love having the solar system to power all the LED lights in the interior.”

What are the things you wish you’d done differently?

DC: “What can I say – for us, it’s perfect! The finished product is amazing…perhaps the largest difficulty has been that so much is “out of the box” that we had to go to multiple people in different cities to get it all done. We also have had to make some changes to deal with all the rock-crawling: we scraped the rear differential cover, which caused a leak, and scraped the plastic on the diesel and DEF tanks as well, so we had some steel sheeting done and beefed up the covers for all three. I feel much better taking the Sprinter into tough rocky trails now! Also we worked with Aluminess to add the ability to carry an ax & shovel in the spring/summer, then change that out to a ski rack for the winters, which has been a great addition.”

Doug Chases’s 4×4 Sprinter Conversion – Equipment List

-4X4 Conversion: Whitefeather Conversions of Red Bluff, CA, did the Sprinter 4×4 conversion. This includes: 4.5 inch lift, HD-welded steel subframe constructed of box tube and high tensile steel plate to replace OE lighter weight sub frame, attaches to Mercedes-Benz body in stock location with stock bolts, manual hub locks, 6,000-lb. load rated Dana 60 Super mono-beam front axle with rear axle appropriate gear ratio, HD Rancho steering stabilizer, open front differential front disc brakes (approx. 36 % bigger than OE Sprinter), 2 speed manual shift New Venture NV271F transfer case (low gear is a crawling gear with transmission in low), oversized front and rear Roadmaster chrome-moly sway bars with poly bushings, Bilstein gas pressure front shock absorbers, Rancho gas pressure adjustable rear shock absorbers, pair billet aluminum rear wheel adaptors, set of 4 forged polished aluminum 17-inch wheels with center caps (spare tire mounted on steel wheel), BFG Rugged Trail E-rated tires, Dana Spicer front driveshaft, OE rear shaft shortened and rebalanced, steel rear lift blocks, Tri-8 rear U-bolts, Pari multileaf rear springs, Tru Trak Gear Drive front differential.
-Penthouse: The penthouse pop-up top was installed by Sportsmobile of Fresno, CA.
-Bumpers: Aluminess built our custom bumpers and custom underbody protection, including:
custom front bumper with grille guard and wrench compartment, 2-inch front hitch receiver, incorporating Lightforce driving lights (110,000 candlewatt).
custom rear bumper with swing away spare tire carrier and deluxe swing-away cargo box with rail on top, expedition kit, and custom ski holder attachment.
-Backup Lights: from www.4WD.com, 800913-8195 260H Series 55W
-Searchlight: GoLight/RadioRay LED 200,000 Candela beam
-Cabinetry: The cabinetry was done by our builder, GTRV of Sebastopol, CA, including:
Couchbed conversion, custom side cabinet with flip-down table, swiveling captain’s chairs, 3 panel solar power system, LED cabin lights, refrigerator, SMEV 7307 deep sink, Wallas 85DU diesel stove/heater, external shower, dual AGM house batteries, CR Laurence camper windows.
-Stereo/GPS/backup camera: Alpine INE-W927HD GPS Nav/Receiver
-Toilet: Thetford 550P Porta-Pottie
-Roof Racks: Thule 60” roof tracks with podium towers, square cross bars and Thule 884 Roll Model kayak carrier.
-Weather Monitor: La Crosse WS-9049U-IT
-Light Bar: Firestorm 60 with amber turn lights from Pickup Specialties.
-Basement storage: GTRV custom.

Happy Trails! TAP into Adventure and share yours with us below.

[TAP note: Factory Mercedes-Benz 4×4 Sprinters are now available. If interested see the Sprinter website and go to “cargo van” tab]

Thanks to Greg Keith of Sprinter RV and Doug Chase for sharing this conversion with us.

The Tembo Tusk Toyota FJ60 Wagon

Contributor

FJ60, TOYOTA FJ60, TEMBO TUSK fj60, Overlanding, over land, Overland, off-road, off-roading, off road, vehicle supported adventure,

This Toyota FJ60 belongs to Jerry L’Ecuyer, owner of Tembo Tusk. Here’s his story of building his rig.

“When I acquired my FJ60, it came with a blown engine and original “poo” brown paint. Both of which I planned on changing. The idea was to source a junkyard Chevy 350 from a wrecked suburban to keep the costs down and collect all the conversion parts in preparation for the transplant. Pulling the old six cylinder engine and transmission was surprisingly easy. Being an original California car, the bolts came apart without too much trouble. Once the radiator was out of the way, there was no stopping and in about two hours the engine was sitting on my driveway.

Toyota was very generous with the engine compartment of the 60 series, which made fitting the V8 a pleasure. I used a Downey bell housing to connect the 350 to the Toyota 4 speed transmission. The hardest part of the install was building a set of cross member offsets to accommodate the new location of the transmission which shifted two inches forward.

I wanted to keep things simple on the trail, so I used an early 90s Chevy V8 with a throttle body injection system. A throttle body system is a glorified carburetor with a simple computer for control. It literally took connecting one wire from the original Toyota wiring harness to the Chevy computer and I had a working engine. Not being a mechanic, I was surprised and thrilled that the engine started on the first try and what a rush it was to drive!

Now that the heart transplant was complete on the FJ60, it was time to tackle the body and interior. I stripped everything out of the passenger compartment, including the headliner, seats and carpet. In retrospect, I wish I had paid a bit more attention to sound deadening. I was so impatient to get the vehicle painted and completed, I figured the new carpet and pad would be all I needed. Wrong! Next time I will take the time needed to address noise in the cabin. Between the B8, aggressive tires and the ability to drive fast, the sound levels were tolerable, but less than ideal. I replaced my original Toyota front seats with Pro-Car seats. Beautiful high performance contoured body hugging seats. Great on the trail, however they left a bit to be desired on long road trips. After about 200 miles the butt starts to get sore! If I had to do it again, I would strongly suggest keeping the Toyota seats and just refurbishing them. For long trips they are far more comfortable. I sourced the headliner from Spector Off-Road and had a local auto upholstery shop do the install. Perfect fit! I used the same shop to do the carpeting. Much less frustrating than doing it myself!

Before installing the interior of the FJ60, we tackled the paint. Toyota makes one heck of a reliable, robust get- you- there – and – back vehicle. However, when it comes to paint colors, they have no idea! On the other hand, Land Rover produces a beautiful, high maintenance, super model piece of art. A Land Rover looks great whether it is running or not and they know paint colors! So I used the best of all worlds. The utilitarian reliability of a Toyota, the ubiquitous Chevy power plant and the beauty of the Kent Green Metallic color of a Land Rover. It really is the best of all worlds!

Lessons learned from my work in bringing an FJ60 back to life? Of paramount importance, start with a rust free vehicle. This is more important than anything else. Rust will come back with a vengeance. Be careful of junk yard engines. the crank shaft broke on my way out of Death Valley splitting the block horizontally. You never know what trauma a junk yard engine has endured before you buy it. I had a new 383 Stroker engine built at a local machine shop for just a bit more money than the cost of my junk yard engine and not to mention all of the labor to do the work twice! If you have a 4-speed transmission, replace it with a 5- speed. I did that when I pulled the engine the second time. A 5-speed is a great upgrade and the V8 gives you the power to appreciate the extra gear. Most importantly, don’t be afraid to work on your vehicle. It is fun, rewarding and very Zen when it comes to knowing your truck inside and out.”